Saturday, February 24, 2007

Talk About a Bargain

An auction on 22 March will include a rare copy of the Declaration of Independence, on which the opening bid is slated at $125,000. Even if it were to sell for that (and it's expected to sell for two or three times that price) its current owner will be making out like a bandit; he purchased the item for $2.48. The AP reports that Michael Sparks, a Nashville music equipment technician, found the Declaration (one of 200 copies printed by William Stone in 1823) at the Music City Thrift Shop last March.

Raynors' Historical Collectible Auctions of Asheville, NC will host the sale; owner Bob Raynor said of the piece "When we quickly looked at it there was no question that it was authentic." The AP adds "The document matched other authenticated official copies based on the size of certain random letters and the placement of the names of Adams [John Quincy, who as Secretary of State ordered the copies printed] and Stone."

This is why it always (well alright, sometimes) pays to sift through the detritus.

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About Me

News and commentary on book history, library culture, digital humanities, archives and related subjects. Written by Jeremy Dibbell, a bibliophile, haunter of used bookstores, and special collections librarian. Email: philobiblos@gmail.com.